“Why don’t you threaten Sari with that?”
“Because even I cannot move her when she wishes to remain.”
“Lucky gypsy. Here we go, everyone. Stay on your guard.”
The seven travelers step out of the tunnel and into a circular valley created by a wall of sheer, red stone cliffs. A thin layer of amber dirt has gathered over pieces of solid granite, several of the ancient slabs visible around the area. Varying in size, tapered obelisks of jade mark the edges of the path that leads to a sealed door built into a grass-topped hill. Jutting out of the rough stone, the dome looks like it would be more at place on the plains that in the mountains. Its light brown soil shows signs of having been meticulously piled and molded. Tiny handprints can be seen in one or two spots, the faint markings resembling those that would be left by a child. Even the door appears to be made of dirt instead of rock, the entrance only identifiable due to the dark creases that outline its buried frame. Barely visible from the valley floor, the tops of several gravestones can be seen at the edge of the higher cliffs. The guards are amazed because they do not remember there being a massive hole within the royal graveyard. All they can recall is a strange circle of quicksand that every child is warned never to enter.
“You three stay at the tunnel entrance,” Timoran whispers to his fellow tribesmen. They open their mouths to argue, but find that their voices have been stolen. “I assume you have been silenced for your own good. This place is meant for my friends and I. All who are not champions are in great danger and will be nothing more than distractions and hindrances. You may act as witnesses of us entering Aintaranurh, but I want you to stay safe. Do not engage with any enemies that appear. If monsters come out of that hill then you are under orders to retreat and wait for us on the far side of the tunnel.”
“Yes, sir!” all three warriors shout with a salute. Unsure of what else to do, they take a seat on the remains of a stone bench near the entrance.
Weapons drawn and nerves strained, the champions cautiously walk toward the Hallowed Hill. A faint groan can be heard from deep beneath their feet, causing them to stop their advance and wait. Sparks abruptly fly from Nyx’s chest and she is dragged by an invisible force, her boots skittering against the ground as she struggles. All attempts to cast a spell are met with failure, the wasted energy harmlessly spurting out of her nose, ears, and mouth in the form of acrid smoke. The others race after their friend only to find that they have been enchanted to move at different speeds, which eventually separates them. The jade obelisks vibrate as the channeler passes them and walls of emerald magic erupt from the stones to create several isolated sections. Nyx is the only one able to pass through the barriers until she slams into the doorway and is turned like a key in a lock. She is stuck upside down and facing the hill while her friends wait for the real to begin.
“I really hate temple entrances,” Luke says, the forest tracker having gotten the farthest along the path. He taps at the barrier to see it shimmer, the response going high into the passing clouds. “I don’t think I can fly out of this. Any thoughts?”
“The books I read didn’t say anything about this,” Nyx admits as she spits dirt out of her mouth. With a groan, the half-elf rubs her lower back and shakes her head clear of a thickening fog. “I think I feel some markings on the door. Maybe I can figure them out, but my head is getting fuzzy. Are any of you together?”
“No and I sense we are about to get company,” Timoran replies from the middle of the path.
Dariana tightens her sapphire top and stretches her arms, a rumbling from below running up her legs. “The threat is underground. I count six chambers, so we were supposed to have our friends and the real Compass Key with us. The time alternation spell would have put each champion in a different box. I hope that doesn’t mean we’re trapped until Sari and Delvin decide to leave the jungle and see what’s taking us so long.”
“In other words, you hope we do not starve to death or get killed by a constantly reactivated trap,” Timoran states as he crouches to put his hand to the ground. Closing his eyes, he focuses on his hearing and tries to recognize the noise that is getting closer. “I am reminded of Nevra Coil and the rooms that had large gears. Either that or heavy footsteps, which makes me fear that we are facing giants. Whatever the case, I have a feeling this is something never encountered by my predecessors.”
Grinding stone can be heard as a granite slab in every division of the path lowers and shifts out of view. The creaking of ancient gears emanates from the holes, followed by the screech of metal scratching against rock. Six jade swordsmen are lifted into the boxes and stand silently, as if waiting for orders. Their horned helmets have grinning faceplates and their smooth suits of platemail have a coin-sized hole in the chest. Crackling energy ripples along the edges of the small openings, which are steadily dropping jade dust without growing any bigger. The sound of steel on stone rings through the air when the knights draw their weapons, which pulse with heat and fire.
Not wanting to give the golem a chance to attack, Timoran swings his axe and shatters his opponent. The barbarian leaps off the platform as it lowers and watches his friends battle their own knights. Given their fighting styles require using speed over strength, Luke and Dariana have a harder time with the creatures. The slender warriors spend most of their time dodging and searching for an opening that will do more than dent the enemy’s armor. Their strikes do very little against the solid bodies, so Timoran searches for a way to get to his friends. He dives to the side when the golem between him and Luke swings through the barrier. A replacement for the destroyed knight rises from the ground as the other enters the box, pitting the champion against two opponents. The sound of crumbling stone can be heard from Dariana’s direction and he can see the other two unclaimed creatures go after his friends.
“Do not destroy them!” Timoran shouts while blocking a sword strike and catching a jade wrist. He tosses the captured golem over his shoulder and knocks the other down with a sweep to its legs. “Or at least try not to do so. A replacement will appear, but I doubt this is a simple endurance test. There is always something hidden with these entrances.”
“Helgard didn’t really have anything beyond the broken pathway,” Nyx points out in a slurred voice. The blood rushing to her head has made her red-faced and on the brink of passing out. “I don’t know how long I can hold out here. The markings aren’t helping and my brain feels . . . mushy. What did all the other tests have in common?”
“They involved the Compass Key, but not all six champions,” Luke answers, rolling under a strike and kicking the legs out from under one of the golems. It crashes to the ground and cracks, but slowly rises back to its feet. “It was all about finding the right combination. Pallice had the shells and the Garden of Uli had the columns. Helgard was kind of a mess, but that pathway probably worked in a similar fashion. Look for something that can work as a series or seems out of place here.”
“The objects we used were both a set and different. For example, the columns were the same design, but each one connected to a separate champion,” Timoran says while preparing to block another attack. Both of the knights unleash waves of fire from their swords, which he deflects through the barrier by spinning his axe. “Their bodies and attacks are immune to the walls, which must be part of the puzzle. The obelisks are different sizes and there is supposed to be all six of us in the trap. This would be easier to figure out if they were not spitting fire at me.” The barbarian is surprised when the golems’ blades shatter from the constant heat. “What just happened? Do they fall apart on their own to make room for fresher enemies?”
Dariana catches the wrist of one golem and uses the arm to block the other’s strike. She can feel how solid the body and sword are, so she finds it strange that those fighting Timoran are so brittle. Kicking one enemy away and flipping the other onto its back, she backs away to get her bearings. Both of her friends are struggling to fight without awakening fresh golems, which has led to Luk
e receiving a cut across his side. Every box and jade knight is identical, so Dariana turns her attention to the ground. It is a momentary distraction that gives one of her opponents the illusion of an opening. Catching the heated blade between her hands, she shoves it to the side and throws a punch at the hole in its chest. The breastplate caves in and a pulse of familiar energy ripples through her body, numbing all of the muscles in her arm.
“These possess Nyx’s aura, but they’re supposed to have the Compass Key gems inside of them,” Dariana announces, realizing how the trap is supposed to work. She shoves her enemies together, watching them stick for an instant before separating. “These two almost bonded, but the process didn’t complete itself. We’ve seen that they can pass through the barriers, so I assume we can toss them into other chambers. Maybe we’re supposed to rebuild the Compass Key in a certain order. Does anybody see a riddle somewhere?”
“I do not think we are in any position to search and read. Though there is a way to fix that problem,” Timoran says, banging his two enemies together. The pair shatter and crumble, giving him a minute to look around his chamber. “If the clue is in one of the empty areas then we will never find the answer. It has to be somewhere that any one of us can see it. Perhaps in the obelisks if the light hits them correctly. The message could even be on the door, but Nyx would be covering it.”
“I’ll see if I can move,” the channeler mutters while bracing her legs against the hill and pushing off. She gradually stands parallel to the ground, revealing a beam of rainbow light connecting her to the lock. Her head is starting to clear, but her legs go numb and she is slammed back against the door. “Nothing! Maybe it’s under something like the first two times. It has to be somewhere that everyone can get to, but isn’t out in the open.”
“I have an idea, but I’m not going to like it,” Luke declares as he ducks a swing that shatters the other golem. Hearing the gears grinding, the half-elf dives for the platform that is about to sink beneath the ground. “Listen for my signal, Timoran! I’m going to need some help getting out of here.”
Luke crouches when he feels the earth rumble and the elevator lowers, his breath stolen by what he sees. His attention is so focused on his surroundings that he barely registers the stone slab sliding overhead and cutting off his escape route. Far below is a churning lake of beautiful green that the platform is steadily moving towards. He leaps for a narrow ledge near the bottom where he finds ancient gears embedded in the walls. Six telescoping pillars of rust-colored metal run to the surface, each one jutting out of the strange liquid. Exposed pieces of machinery can be seen throughout the immense chamber, causing the half-elf to wonder if they are standing on top of a long lost invention. Luke watches the lowering platform sink into the pool and return with a jade knight standing at attention. With a whining hiss, a beam of energy erupts from the ceiling to strike the golem in the chest and bring it to life.
“How in all of Windemere is somebody supposed to figure this out?” Luke asks out loud. He covers his mouth when he sees hundreds of swords rise from the pool. “Only whispers and I need to find a way to search this place. Though I’m not sure how those golems would get to me. Best not to find out, so I’ll fly around and see if I can locate any clues.”
Transforming into the griffin, Lucy forgets that the ledge she is on is narrow and her first step nearly sends her tumbling into the liquid jade. Easily avoiding the blades that rise from the lake, she flies a few feet above the pool and weaves around the metal towers. After several spiraling passes, she fails to find any markings beyond those created by time, dormancy, and friction. Guessing that the clue must be where any of the champions can find it, the griffin heads for the ceiling and searches for the source of the beam that activates the golems. A space for the Compass Key is in the dark stone, but it is nothing more than crackling energy surrounding an orb of glass. The rest of the smooth area is covered in thick shadows that require she find a way to get more light into the balmy underground.
Stretching her wing, Lucy knocks on the stone slab below Timoran and waits for him to smash his opponents. The gears in the walls roar to life and the two platforms lower toward the jade lake, allowing thick beams of sunlight into the chamber. Due to a mild enchantment on the stone, the shadows refuse to recede from the edges of the openings. Fearing that she has failed, the griffin is about to leave the underground, but stops at the sound of the Compass Key space humming. As the process of activing the new golems begins, two of the gem spaces send the crackling beams of energy into the creatures. The display creates enough light to erase the darkness spell and reveal some writing in the stone. Hovering upside down, she lets Luke’s bard’s memory etch the words into his brain before making her escape. The elegant beast soars out of the nearest hole before it can close, knocking the jade knight off the platform as she passes. Before she can get very high, a burst of magic engulfs the griffin and teleports her back to her original box where she becomes Luke once more.
“There was a riddle around a spot that the Compass Key is supposed to fit into,” the half-elf says, dodging the waiting golems. He flips and rolls while remembering the faint letters that becomes clear within a second. “The six must become one. Join as in the olden times and earn the raw core. The second part is what loses me. By the way, there’s a giant pool of liquid jade beneath us. Probably enough to make thousands of these golems, so fighting our way out of this isn’t going to happen.”
“Raw core is what ancient casters called the elements,” Dariana replies, tossing one of her enemies into the two fighting Timoran. All three stick and separate, leaving the barbarian facing all of them. “Sorry about that. None of my ideas are working. There should be elemental symbols somewhere since we need to go in a specific order. Again, I think not having the real Compass Key has broken the trap. Not in our favor either.”
“Why would Gabriel send us here if we could not get inside?” Timoran asks, smashing the golems and turning to face the opening. No longer wanting to be patient, he prepares to destroy the new jade knight as soon as it appears. “The change to the Compass Key must be taken into account. The trap is working off Nyx’s energy instead of the artifact, so that might alter the riddle.”
Luke laughs when an idea comes to his mind and he spins around both of his enemies. “The impatient tattoo and her power surges. I don’t think we’re meant to solve this trap like it was originally intended. Nyx is supposed to overload the thing. You picked a nice time to keep your temper under control, big sister.”
“Well, crazy stunts are your specialty, Luke,” Dariana claims as she kicks her opponent in half. She grabs the fallen sword and jams it into the platform with the hopes of jamming the mechanism. “Stop sitting around, Nyx, and get to work. I think we can all agree that you’ve had enough of a rest.”
“Stop making fun of me!” the channeler snaps from the doorway. Her body erupts with fiery magic, which she plunges into the hill. “Everyone told me to behave and now you want me to get mad. It’s not my fault that I listened.”
Veins of crimson energy run along the granite slabs and into the obelisks while the golems freeze in mid-movement. The tapered pillars shatter into dust, causing the shimmering barriers to flicker out of existence with a high-pitched shriek. An explosion can be heard from underground and the champions feel the jade pool slam into the cavern’s ceiling. Tiny spurts of the green liquid pop out of several spaces, the molten stone hissing as it solidifies on the ground. With a second blow, the metal platforms fall away to release geysers of jade into the sky. Pelted by a emerald rain, the three barbarian guards retreat into the tunnel that collapses behind them. With no other path to follow, the champions sprint towards the hill where Nyx remains stuck to the door. Luke steps out of the way as Timoran and Dariana lower their shoulders and ram into the entrance, which shatters under the devastating impact. The nimble forest tracker catches Nyx as he dives through the opening, the damaged frame splintering and crumbling apart. The last thing the champions
see through the falling dirt is a rising flood of liquid jade that traps them in Aintaranurh.
*****
Flames erupt from stone sconces that are high on the walls, their light filling the entire chamber. Round tables with sturdy chairs give the room the appearance of a tavern, complete with a bar taking up the right hand wall. There are nearly one hundred bottles of alcohol on the lower shelf that runs along the base of a flawless mirror. A large chandelier hangs crooked from the ceiling with a ‘No Swinging’ sign dangling from its iron rim. Carts with empty dishware and cups have been gathered in a far corner, the small collection blocking a thin door to what the champions assume is a bathroom. A stage with various instruments sits opposite the entrance and the skeletal remains of a bard remains on a stool, his boney hand holding a feathered hat out for tips. The smell of fresh ale and hot food drifts from a metal door that routinely opens and closes because of a soothing breeze. Brief glimpses into the kitchen show hanging pots and pans, which glint in the flickering torchlight.
“I did not expect anything like this,” Timoran admits as he leads his friends down the middle of the room. He runs a finger along a table and finds that there is not a single mote of dust. “The guardian must be very neat and organized. Strange that it has not approached us. I was under the impression that we would be greeted or face another challenge.”
“I do sense something here,” Dariana whispers while rubbing her temples. A strong presence surrounds her and she attempts to make contact before a psychic jolt hits her brain. “Purple boots rice puzzle box. Tickle! Elephant gnome underwear. Spank me!”
Dariana claps her hands around her mouth and tries shaking her head clear of the fog that is making her spout embarrassing gibberish. The others jump away when a tiny penguin clambers out of her ear and grows to its full height. With a gentlemanly bow, the animal puts on a tasseled cap and waddles to the bar where it crawls into the ice box. Applause erupts from around the room and the chairs stomp their wooden feet to create a deafening symphony. Nyx attempts to use a magic sight spell to find the source of the enchantments, but the casting causes her eyes to leap out of her head. Free of their sockets, the twin orbs fly around the chandelier and land on Timoran’s shoulders to nuzzle against his warm hair. More applause causes them to disappear in a puff of smoke and return to the half-elf’s face.
Tribe of the Snow Tiger (Legends of Windemere Book 10) Page 36